


The Road That Lies Ahead Of Us

by bananasandroses (achuislemochroi)



Series: Whofic [84]
Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: 4X13 (Journey's End), Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Tenth Doctor Era, reposting old fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-04
Updated: 2017-06-04
Packaged: 2018-11-08 21:53:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,091
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11090673
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/achuislemochroi/pseuds/bananasandroses
Summary: She promised you 'for ever'; now, she has the chance to keep her word.





	The Road That Lies Ahead Of Us

**Author's Note:**

> Yes, this is an AU, Ten/Rose, _Journey’s End_ fic. No, I don’t care about canon.
> 
> The POV alternates in this fic; POV changes are indicated by three asterisks in a row, like so: ***

_The road that lies ahead of us  
Is wider than the world_

Runrig, _An Dealachadh_

The majority of the Doctor’s guests leave when you land back in London. After that, the TARDIS takes you all across the Void to return your mum to her new family. You know your mum wants you to stay, but how can you leave the Doctor, now you have him back? And why, you wonder, do all your important good-byes have to happen on this cold, deserted beach?

***

‘So,’ Jackie asks you, impatient to know, ‘what were you going to say to Rose, back on that beach, with that transmission thing of yours and everything? Before you got cut off?’

‘ _Mum_!’ Rose sounds mortified. ‘It doesn’t matter; it’s not important.’ She looks at you, and smiles. ‘Not any more.’

‘Does it need saying?’

Your tone is level, but the hand creeping up to play with the hair at the nape of your neck, something Rose at least knows you only do when nervous, betrays you. You fool nobody, not even for a moment.

It soon becomes clear Jackie doesn’t like your apparent nonchalance as she walks up to you and pokes a finger in your chest.

‘Are you being deliberately cruel?’ She’s shouting at him, angry on behalf of her daughter. ‘Or are you saying the first thing that comes into your head, without giving it any thought at all?’

Your hand goes reflexively to your cheek; rubbing it, you feel a sense of wary unease bubble up in your chest.

‘What have I done _now_?’ you almost yell back, your pride stung and temper for once getting the better of you.

Jackie’s expression changes to one of angry frustration as she seems to recognise what she’s dealing with.

‘You _just don’t get it_ , do you?’ she snarls at you, watching as you shake your head in bewilderment.

‘He’s _an alien_ , Mum,’ Rose interrupts. ‘You keep forgetting that.’ Your head whips around to her so fast you feel dizzy. ‘Things like this are different for him,’ she continues, her eyes never leaving your face.

‘I’ll give him “things are different for him”,’ Jackie snaps, not mollified in the slightest. Ignoring her, as you tend to do when people say something you don’t want to hear, you focus your whole attention instead on the woman in front of you.

‘Rose?’ Your tone changes, becomes softer and more tender.

‘Doctor?’ Something about Rose’s voice sounds strained to you, another thing to add to the growing pile of guilt. But you press on, needing to get this out.

‘That last time I saw you, here on Bad Wolf Bay. The sentence I left unfinished.’

‘After I’d told you I love you?’

You notice how she still speaks of it in present tense. Moving near enough to take her hand, you slide your fingers through hers until the two of you are linked the way you’d always been.

‘That’s the one,’ you agree, bringing your joined hands to your lips so you can brush a kiss over her knuckles. ‘I can finish it now for you. If you want me to, that is; it’s been so long since I last had the chance, and I rather messed it up that time, and I—’

Rose cuts you off by placing a finger from her free hand on your lips. You kiss it and give her a gentle smile.

‘Still making ten words do the work of three, then? Good to see things never change,’ she says, her voice full of laughter as she smiles up at you. ‘But, since you asked? Yeah. It would be good to hear it.’

You use the hand you still hold to pull her closer still, your other arm snaking around her.

‘I said “Rose Tyler”,’ you say, voice low and full of emotion.

‘I _know_ , silly!’ The obvious affection in her voice neutralises any sting from the words. ‘You told me you’d tell me how that sentence was gonna end.’

You give her a wolfish grin.

‘So I did.’

Wanting only Rose to hear what you have to say, you lean in so your lips are level with her ear. You can’t resist a chuckle deep in your throat when the warmth of your breath makes her shiver. ‘What I was _going_ to say, before the connexion broke, was this: Rose Tyler, how could you _not_ know how very much I love you?’

You move to give her a brief kiss on the mouth before pulling away, only for Rose to pull you back down to give you a proper kiss. You return the kiss with equal enthusiasm; deepening it and losing yourself so thoroughly in the accompanying rush of sensation it takes Rose’s need for air to prise the two of you apart.

***

‘Rose?’

Basking in the afterglow of the kiss you’d shared with the Doctor, you’d lost yourself in memories of the last time you’d kissed that thoroughly. The sound of your mum calling your name snaps you back to reality.

Turning in the Doctor’s arms, you face your mum and the reality of that cold, cruel beach. The only things to convince you you’ve not hallucinated the past few years are the pin-striped arms slung firmly around your waist and the comforting thump-THUMP-thump-THUMP of twin heartbeats behind you. You start to shake and, clearly alarmed, the Doctor tries to calm you by whispering in your ear.

‘Rose, it’s all right. It’s _all right_. I’m _here_.’

***

When Rose turns back towards you, clutching at your coat and burying her face in your chest, you tighten your arms around her before tracing comforting patterns on her back. She continues to cling to you for some time; growing concerned, you drop a kiss into her hair before seeking Jackie with your eyes.

‘I think this might go better if we were in the TARDIS,’ you say. ‘I think it would make Rose, at least, feel more at ease. Agreed?’

Jackie nods, heading towards your ship, and you are alone again with Rose.

‘We’ll go back to the TARDIS, shall we?’

Your tone’s light and tender, although you know the time before the breach closes is growing shorter by the second. Much longer, and the TARDIS might not get back. Pushing this to the back of your mind for now because you’re determined to find Rose the time she needs, you swing her into your arms and carry her the short distance to the TARDIS. When you reach the console room, the reassuring hum and green-gold glow seem to make Rose feel safer. Once you set her down on the grating, she lets you go.

She still seems wary of being too far away from you and clings to you as if you will abandon her at the first opportunity. Since you do not intend to do anything of the sort, you find it more than a little unnerving. You make a mental note to follow up on that with Rose later; she’s always had abandonment issues, especially since you crossed her timeline to take her to see her father, but this seems more, well, _pronounced_ somehow.

Filing it away for later, you turn to Jackie with the ghost of a smile on your face.

‘So,’ you say, reaching for Rose’s hand as you speak and sliding your fingers in so they mesh with hers again, ‘Jackie, I think this is where you and I say good-bye. This reality’s sealing itself off again. For ever.’

‘You’re going to take her away from me again, aren’t you?’

Jackie’s tone is mournful and it looks for a moment as if there’ll be tears before she gets her emotions back under control. Rose, naturally, tries to comfort her mother, but you find you can't quite drag your attention away from Rose.

‘Doctor?’ Jackie’s voice, still full of emotion, wavers a little.

‘Jackie.’

Your voice is gentle, almost tender, but underneath there’s an unmistakable hint of steel. You’ve _every_ intention of winning this argument. ‘Jackie, Jackie, Jackie. You’ve had the second chance other people can only dream of: a second chance with the man you love.’ Your eyes lock with Rose’s at this point and you miss Jackie’s reaction to what you’ve said. ‘And if it’s what she wants,’ you continue, in theory addressing Jackie but with your focus on Rose, ‘are you going to deny Rose her chance of the same?’

Jackie makes a choking noise, which seems to come from deep in her throat. You see her close her eyes for a moment, and swallow, before she turns to her daughter.

‘Rose?’

Just the one word, name and question both.

You watch Rose look away from you towards her mother, and for a few moments feel real fear. But then you see the way Rose is looking at Jackie, and relax a little. Rose’s expression is of somebody watching something precious that is already for ever gone.

‘Mum ... I’m going with him.’

‘But, but, you _can’t_ ,’ Jackie stutters out. ‘I’d never see you again.’

‘Mum, listen. The last time I was in our universe, the one we came from, I swore to him I would never leave him. You already know what happened after that. But now I've a chance to keep my promise. How can I stay here, without him?’

Jackie says nothing to this. With half an eye on the two women, you calculate how long you have before the dimension retroclosure makes it too dangerous for you to return. Your eyes widen when you realise just how little time you have.

‘Rose, we—’

‘Is this what you want, Rose?’ Jackie interrupts you, in a tone suggesting she has caught on to the urgency of this. ‘Tell me the truth, mind, and not what you think I want to hear. Is this what you want?’

Rose turns away from her mother back towards you; again, your eyes lock.

‘This dimension’s sealing itself off, for ever,’ you remind her. ‘You’ll never see her again.’ You watch her eyes fill with tears, hating yourself for doing this to her but knowing you have no choice. And when she smiles at you, you feel even more guilty. After a few seconds, she answers you both in a voice choked with pain.

‘It’s what I want. But if I could only keep you _both_!’

You itch to comfort her, but Jackie gets there first. And then you remind yourself how you’ll have Rose to yourself for a long time after this, unlike Jackie. So you let mother comfort daughter, for once forcing yourself to over-rule the jealous, possessive parts of your nature and the urgent messages your brain keeps sending you to protect Rose. The same Rose who stands, perfectly safe, in front of you being hugged by her mother.

All too soon, you put a hand on Jackie’s shoulder.

‘I’m sorry, Jackie. But we need to go.’

Jackie nods, letting go of Rose. You ache to take Rose into your arms but don't, choosing instead to kiss Jackie’s cheek before holding out your hand to Rose, who takes it.

‘I’m so, so sorry,’ you say to Jackie, as you feel Rose’s hand tighten its grip on yours.

‘Take good care of her for me,’ Jackie whispers, just loud enough for you to hear.

‘Always. You have my word.’

‘I love you, Mum.’

‘I know you do. I love you too, Rose. Whatever happens, always remember that.’

‘Mum—’ Rose’s voice breaks and her grip on your hand tightens to the point of pain.

Jackie turns towards the door, digging into her pocket for something as she goes; she opens the door and is halfway through before she stops.

‘I’d almost forgotten,’ she says in a wistful voice full of pain that tears at your hearts. ‘You left this behind, Rose,’ she continues, ‘and I have the oddest feeling you’ll need it where you’re going. Although it’s not like you not to have it with you ...’ And with one last, trembling, smile she places something on the console and is gone.

You check the door is properly fastened properly and then, after you pull the lever that completes the dematerialisation sequence, you go with Rose to find out what Jackie left on the other side of the console. You spot it before Rose does and hold it out to her: her TARDIS key. Her face crumples as she takes it but you’re there in an instant, comforting her as you always have, as you start on your journey together once again.


End file.
